Miles to Go
by shortie240
Summary: Picks up after the Battle at Hogwarts. Follows Hermione, Ron, as well as occasionally Harry and Ginny, as they try to move on and create new lives for themselves in a world post Voldemort.
1. Chapter 1

She would always remember that day. The smell of the smoke still rising from the collapsed building. The sound of crying over the mangled bodies strewn across the battlefield. The feeling of another hand clasped in hers, a lifeline, pulling her back to reality, while simultaneously feeling completely alone in the world.

She would remember that day because it was engraved in her. It was part of her being. Just like the ministry, just like Malfoy Manor, just like Godrick's Hollow, just like every other thing that they had been through since they were eleven. She never thought that some boys she had met on a train would have changed her life forever, lead her on a never ending series of misadventures that would change everything, set her further apart from everyone else, make her a leader, a caretaker, a sister, a confidant, a friend.

She had seen a lot of things someone her age should never have to see- things no one should ever have to see. She had lived through it all, but she never thought that she would see such evil and devastation on this scale. Now that she had, all of her infamous logic and knowledge failed her. She didn't have any advice, or plans, or even words of comfort to offer. She was numb. If it weren't for the feel of a cold hand in hers, the occasional squeeze bringing her back to life every so often, she wouldn't be sure if she were really here to experience it. There it was again, the squeeze of a hand, pulling her back to the horrendous, life altering present that would now be her life. When she looked at him, all she saw was the boy from the train. How many years ago was that now? It felt like a lifetime. She saw taped up glasses and too big clothes on an undernourished boy who looked like all happiness had been sucked out of him by life. She knew that what actually stood there now, grasping her hand was that boy, a little taller, still too skinny, with cracked glasses. His eyes seemed like they held all of the sadness in the world, as if he had carried everyone's burdens on his shoulders, which in a way he had. Is she looked closely, she could see some content, the sense that he knew this life of pain was over, and that he was about to embark on the life of a normal boy, with normal worries and problems. She could tell that he had been set free, released of his nightmarish past that seemed to haunt him wherever he went. She also saw that he was looking back at her with a sad smile, as if he was reading her thoughts. Then he said the words that brought her back to life;

_Go find him._


	2. Chapter 2

She didn't have a plan. For once there was no specific course of action that she had mapped out in her head. There were many different places he could be. She crossed a few off of the list in her head as she made her way towards the broken down castle. Where once stood an impressive fortress, protection against the evils of the outside world, now laid broken walls and crumbling stone in its wake. Pieces of walls that had been blown away by dark magic, by people who would do whatever it took to break down that marvelous place. Portraits hung crookedly on the walls, their occupants sliding from side to side, trying to get their bearings.

Usually she would go straight to the dining hall and find him stuffing his face with sweets. Not today though, he would not want to be around all of them. The ones who had fought bravely and lost. He would not want to see-_No, _she stopped herself quickly to keep from imagining who, as well as what was in that room. There's no way he would be in the library, that was always her place, and his favorite place to avoid. The quidditch field had been burnt to rubble, and she had no idea what could have become of the Room of Requirement, though she feared that it must have had the same fate as the former. That left the boys dormitory. Though it was the last place she thought of, Hermione realized that her feet had been carrying her there all along. When she got to the portrait of the Fat Lady, she didn't have to bother with the password, as the Fat Lady let her in, wiping her eyes with a handkerchief. She knew who Hermione was, there was no use with a password, not today.

When she walked into the common room, there was only a handful of people, asleep in the armchairs by the fire. Hermione walked towards the stairs to the boys dormitory, only hesitating a moment before climbing them, not knowing what would meet her inside. Once she walked in the room, she was shocked at what she saw. Things were not chaotic, there were no thrown objects or broken things littering the floor. Part of her had expected that in his rage, Ronald would have trashed the room, but to her surprise, it felt like she had stepped back in time. The boys dormitory looked just as it had when she was in school. The beds were neatly made with the curtains open, boys socks were hung by the fire with their towels left to dry, the school trunks neatly packed as if the year had come to a close. There was only one bed with the curtains closed and Hermione was somewhat afraid to go over and pull the curtains open. She could still go back and run away, he might not know that she was here. But as usual she couldn't turn away from him. They had both done enough hiding, it was time to see what their life could be, together.

She slowly walked over and gently pulled open the curtain to his bed. There lay Ron, on his side, eyes tightly shut as if he was in pain. Sleep had always come easy to Ron, but Hermione knew that this feat was now failing him. She sat down on the side of the bed, without touching him. She knew that he knew she was there, but she didn't say anything. There was nothing that she could say anyway, this wasn't a time for talking. No amount of words, or facts from a book could change the way that he would feel in this moment and she knew that. She was started out of her reverie when she felt Ron's warm hand grasp her thigh. He didn't open his eyes, they were still as tightly shut as ever. She hesitantly reached out her hand and ran her fingers through his hair. For a margin of a second, she saw some kind of relief pass over his face. No matter how small it was, she saw it, and she knew that he wanted her there, and that was enough for her. She continued to run her fingers through his hair until he fell asleep. She didn't know how long it took. His eyes continued to be screwed shut in sleep but she knew that he was sleeping for his breathing had slowed and his grasp had loosened on his leg, his hand now just lying there. She sat there, running her fingers through his hair, staring at Ron, hoping that he would understand her message;

_I'm here._


	3. Chapter 3

Her eyes opened, slowly, before she quickly let them close again. It had been a long time since she felt like she could really sleep. There was nowhere to be, no time table she had to follow, no next Horcrux to find, no Snatcher or Death Eater to outsmart or run away from. She could take her time. When had she fallen asleep? The last thing she remembered was sitting on Ron's bed. She didn't really care; she let herself lay there, eyes still closed. She was warm; she had never felt so comfortable in her life. There was some foreign weight on her side. She supposed that she could figure out what it was but that would mean having to open her eyes and look, and she really had no desire to do that, so she decided not to care. She fell back to sleep almost instantly.

When she woke up again she had no idea how long it had been. This time when she woke, she was more aware. Somehow she had fallen asleep next to Ron. Not too long ago this would have really scared her. She would have leapt out of the bed and ran in the opposite direction as fast as possible, but not today. Today, she was perfectly fine staying where she was, wrapped in Ron's arms, under the covers ignoring the rest of the world. She felt her hand pull towards his head wanting to run her fingers through his hair again, feel the silkiness of his strands between them. Once she started she couldn't stop, and continued to softly comb through his hair. Soon she heard his quiet moan and he slowly opened his eyes.

"Mmm, good morning Hermione," he said, sleepiness in his voice. Then, she quickly felt him tense before he scooted back and almost fell out of the bed trying to stand up.

"Hermione! What are you doing?" he yelped his voice cracking.

"Nothing I just woke up," she said leaning on her elbow. "I guess a fell asleep after I came up here last night, I'm sorry I can leave," she started to say while sitting up and making to get out of the bed.

"No!" Ron yelled before her feet could touch the ground.

"Alright," she started slowly. "Then what do you want me to do?" she asked confusedly.

"I…I want you to stay," he answered shyly as he sat back on the bed, once again placing his hand on her thigh.

"Okay then, I'll stay," she said lying back down on top of the covers.

Soon enough Ron lay down next to her again but made obvious efforts not to touch her.

"Sorry I was so weird," he started, "it's just, well, it's weird."

Hermione giggled quietly, "It is, isn't it?"

"I mean, I guess it shouldn't be. We've known each other for years, we've been in some pretty strange situations together, we did just spend how many months living in a _tent_ together, plus last night we-" he stopped himself, sucking in air as if maybe she wouldn't notice that he had almost brought up their kiss.

He had referred to her as his girlfriend only hours prior to this, so why was he being so shy about it now?

"Yes…" she said slowly letting it slide for now. "Well you're right, there's no reason for things to be weird."

With that, she took his hand and laced their fingers together, feeling a chill go down her spine at the contact. He seemed to relax following her actions and brought both of their hands to rest across her side.

The two didn't say anything else. They knew that eventually they would have to talk about the last couple of months, about last night, about what the future held, but for right now they were content to lay in silence, holding hands, treasuring the moments in which they didn't have to think about anything.


End file.
